Month: September 2015

I’ve collaborated with Miles AKA MC Moneypenny before and each time we make something, it’s better than the last project. So when he asked me to help shoot a video for his new single, “Feel The Bern”, a rap in support of presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, I was instantly on board.

MC Moneypenny and the Meatheads

La Gondola and Big Nazo were major contributors to the production of the video. A scenic boat ride with crazy space monsters would not have been possible without either of these benefactors.

On the water

“Feel the Bern” will be MC Moneypenny’s third music video. You can check out his previous two singles “Tap Dat A$$et” and “Land of the Fee“.

An old friend and fellow video junkie from my UMass Amherst days works as a gondolier and pulled me in to help produce commercial material for the company. And so it came to be that I spent this passed friday on a gondola on the Providence River.

Marcello “Il Boss”

Marcello is a fountain of historical information and gifted orator. As we made our way down the river where we conducted an interview, Marcello casually described the history of buildings and cultural landmarks of the city.

Miles aka Fabrizio aka MC Moneypenny

My college friend turned gondolier, Miles, was on board also to help and advise during the interview. Later in the day, Miles would transform into his alter-ego, political rapper MC Moneypenny, and we would record a music video for a new single.

Interview with Marcello on the docks

The biggest challenge of the day was besting the elements. Sunlight offered great exposures and tricky flares and highlight blowouts. Had I been shooting on a DSLR, I doubt I’d have been able to cope with the massive exposure shifts as smoothly and quickly as I could with my camcorder. For the dockside interview, a bounce was in order, but that proved to be too powerful for Marcello. The bounce from the midday sun was not only too bright but too hot for him. But the shoot looked good!

Many many miles away in a land called Rhode Island, there is a photographer I know. That photographer is planning a showing of his photos, centering around painters and their work. That’s where I come in, to help create a dramatic promotional video in anticipation of the gallery show.

Photographer becomes the model

Eric Frazer (EricFrazerPhotography.com), who I have worked with before, is quite gifted. The aesthetic for the video was entirely his idea. We set up at his studio space outside of Providence, blocked out the windows and taped some green poster boards to the walls. We also pulled off some workable silhouette work against the bare white wall.

Eric in deep thought

The second half of the shoot was more candid. I followed Eric around while he set up his lights for a model shoot, capturing his thoughtful preparation. Overall, I think the finished piece will be sleek and moody. Looking forward to cutting it together.

Another shoot on a boat. A much smaller vessel this time, and much rockier. It was beautiful day on Boston harbor for a demonstration video for FLIR’s navigational software. It was quite a challenge to keep the camera steady. A tripod is almost worthless when the horizon keeps shifting, and the engines vibrate the floor so much that the image is fuzzy. Luckily, I brought my shoulder rig, and did my best to keep ‘er steady.

August started off mildly, but towards the end things really started to heat up. Boston Open Screen returned, and I sort of fell into being a part of the coordinating team. Which is something I’m really excited to be a part of!

My freelance videographer account with StudioNow finally got some attention, and I’ve been on two small business profile shoots.

I finally got around to wrapping up an edit on a web sitcom with some old friends, and it’s a welcome reminder of how silly video production can be.

Thanks to a friend in the Open Screen gang, I’ve started producing videos for FLIR.